[C320-list] Backing into slip

[alahlm at comcast.net]

     with a fast current in the river jeff an I dock in     plus the effect of the tide flowing in or out     the sunday comedy show is at the local town ramp at 5 PM  to watch the circus     it's a constant comedy of errors watching them trying to get their boats back on their trailers     also a learning experince for those watching

    Al Ahlman
      #476

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "Warren Updike" <wupdike at hotmail.com> 

> No one seems to have mentioned this yet; but, here is a strategy that has saved 
> my buns more than once. When the wind or current make a bow or stern approach 
> problematic, I bring the boat alongside the pilings at the entrance to the slip 
> - hull perpendicular to the slip. Best done heading into the wind. Then, using 
> one of the dock lines from the pile as a spring to a stern cleat, back the 
> engine and you will rotate the stern into the slip. Best done heading into the 
> wind. Once the bow is at a reasonable angle to the wind, let go the line and 
> continue into the dock. Once the beam is inside the pilings, you have it made. 
> 
> Another trick with a safety line from the dock to the entrance piling is to have 
> ready a piece of line with a loop on one end and a hook on the other. 
> Immediately after entering the slip, on the windward side, hook the line to the 
> safety line and drop the loop over a cleat. Now you can forget about that side 
> and concentrate on the rest of the process. 
> 
> With our first sailboat, I was nervous about looking like a lubber in our new 
> marina. That is, until I watched the circus around some of the "old salts" 
> making their landing. I found that no one criticizes a botched docking, and 
> everyone applauds a good one. 
> 
> Warren & Pattie Updike 
> C320, #62, 1994, "Warr De Mar" 
> Frog Mortar Creek, Middle River 
> Chesapeake Bay